September 11, 2005
WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ -
Freshman Fernando Londono's goal lifted New Jersey Institute of Technology into a 1-1 tie just 21 seconds before halftime and then the Highlanders and Fordham played 65 minutes of scoreless soccer to finish tied at 1-1 after two overtimes.
The Highlanders (1-1-2), unbeaten in their last three games, won the title of Monmouth University's SoccerPost.com Classic, having defeated Manhattan, 2-0, on Saturday and then tying Fordham on Sunday.
NJIT and host Monmouth each got a win and a tie in the two-day tournament, but NJIT had a better goal differential (3-1) in the two games. Monmouth, which tied Fordham, 1-1, on Saturday, defeated Manhattan, 1-0, on Sunday for a 2-1 goal differential. Fordham had the two ties and Manhattan was 0-2 in its two games.
On Sunday, Fordham (1-1-2) applied heavy early pressure and was reward with a goal off a quick counter in the offensive third, as Omer Rozen fed Sam Acheampong, who scored at 4:50, giving the Rams a quick 1-0 advantage.
It was the first time this season that NJIT has surrendered the first goal and snapped a stretch of 204 minutes of shutout defensive play for the Highlanders. The last previous goal was Boston University's sudden-death game-winner in the fourth minute of the second overtime on September 1. Since then, NJIT played to a double overtime scoreless tie vs. Stony Brook and then shut out Manhattan, 2-0.
Fordham maintained its heavy pressure for the first 20 minutes on Sunday, before NJIT started gaining more of the ball.
Still, the Highlanders' tying goal came as something of a surprise, as neither defense was giving the other team much of an opening and the clock was winding down on the first half on a warm, sunny afternoon.
With less than a minute left in the half and the ball in the Fordham end, NJIT's Eddie Romero (Laurel, DE/Sussex Central HS) ran onto the ball in the right corner and centered a crossing pass back to the middle. Then, like a baseball slugger hitting a hanging curve, Londono (New Rochelle, NY/New Rochelle HS) one-timed the ball and fired a 15-yard blast into the upper left corner. It was Londono's first college goal.
The second half and overtime was dominated by the defenses. Fordham, which had a 5-3 advantage in first-half shots, stretched it to 12-4 by the end of regulation, but most of the saves for NJIT goalkeeper Collin Cunning (Belfast, ME/Belfast Area HS) were routine.
Where Cunning literally stood tall was on crossing attempts by Fordham, especially on corner kicks. The Rams got 14 corner kicks in the match, but the 6-foot-4 Cunning repeatedly picked off the early ones, forcing Fordham to alter its approach on corner kicks, ultimately neutralizing what can be a dangerous spot for the defense.
In addition to Cunning's dominance of the air space in front of the goal, the NJIT defenders trapped Fordham into 10 offsides violations after halftime.
Londono, Romero, Pablo Ponce (La Paz, Bolivia/Rutgers University) and Rafael Barrera (Red Oak, TX/Red Oak, HS) represented NJIT on the All-Tournament team.
The Highanders will visit Iona on Wednesday, September 14, in a 3 pm start. The non-conference match in New Rochelle, NY, will be a homecoming for Londono, who is from the Westchester County city and also for his teammate, Victor Bertini, who hails from nearby Irvington, NY.
